RELIGION BRIEFS

Two central Ohio residents are being honored by a New York seminary for their commitment to Jewish life and learning.

Jewish seminary in New York honors two local residents

Two central Ohio residents are being honored by a New York seminary for their commitment to Jewish life and learning.

Norman Hosansky of Columbus' Eastmoor neighborhood and Leah Weintraub of Bexley will receive the Jewish Theological Seminary's Shin Award on June 12. It honors individuals for service to their community, their synagogue and the seminary.

Hosansky is a 45-year member of Congregation Tifereth Israel who has worked in interfaith programs and taught English-as-a-second-language courses at the Jewish Community Center.

Weintraub leads the adult education committee at Congregation Agudas Achim and often leads services at the synagogue. She teaches at Columbus School for Girls.

California Episcopal church agrees to marry gay couples

A prominent liberal Episcopal church in Pasadena, Calif., said it will allow gay couples to marry after the state's Supreme Court opened civil marriage to same-sex couples starting in June.

The move by All Saints Episcopal Church is likely to fan tensions within the U.S. church and with the wider Anglican Communion as bishops from around the world head to England this summer for a high-stakes, once-a-decade summit.

Los Angeles Bishop J. Jon Bruno, a supporter of gay marriage who welcomed the court's ruling on May 15, could not be reached for comment.

The Episcopal Church defines marriage as between a man and a woman, although some bishops allow same-sex blessings (but not marriages) in their dioceses. A spokeswoman for the Episcopal Church headquarters in New York declined to comment.

In Massachusetts, the only other state to recognize same-sex marriage, Episcopal Bishop Thomas Shaw has told his priests they may bless those relationships but not officiate in same-sex civil marriages.

Vatican reopens pagan tomb beneath St. Peter's to tourists

The Vatican has reopened the largest and most luxurious of the pagan tombs in the necropolis under St. Peter's Basilica after nearly a year of restoration work.

The Valeri Mausoleum was built by a family of former slaves who, once freed, amassed a vast fortune.

The tomb tells the history of the family, particularly in the bas-reliefs of the head of a girl and a boy who were children in the Caius Valerius Herma family. The children died young, possibly of plague.

It is one of 22 pagan tombs in the grottoes under the basilica. Tourists can have a guided tour of the grottoes by appointment.

The once-open-air pagan burial grounds were covered up by Emperor Constantine, a convert to Christianity, in the fourth century to build the first basilica over the site believed to be the tomb of St. Peter.

The Valeri tomb, made up of several rooms and niches, is hundreds of feet from the burial place of the Apostle Peter, venerated by Catholics as the first pope.

Malaysia wants to lure makers of products under Islamic rules

Malaysia is aiming to become a worldwide hub for food and other products prepared according to Islamic religious rules by offering new tax exemptions to investors in the industry, the Southeast Asian nation's prime minister said.

A halal designation means a product complies with Islamic principles of hygiene and humane treatment of animals, along with other rules involving production.

The government is seeking growth in halal processed foods, cosmetics and personal-care items, pharmaceuticals, food ingredients, livestock and meat products, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said. Government-backed halal industry parks have been set up to help investors.

Abdullah said worldwide halal trading in products and services is estimated to be in the trillions of U.S. dollars and has significant growth potential.